In the world of motion picture and video production, there are many ways to move the camera in an artistic way. One of these ways is to use a camera dolly. Camera dollies come in all shapes and sizes. In film production there are several well known state-of-the-art dollies: the J.L.Fisher dollies (Burbank, Calif.), the Chapman Super Peewee dolly (North Hollywood, Calif.), and the Panther dolly (Munich, Germany). These dollies are massive four-wheel units which are designed to carry a mounted camera (using a fluid or geared head), while also accommodating a camera operator and an assistant cameraman. All these dollies can raise and lower the camera as well. The dolly is operated or steered by an additional person (the dolly grip). There is another state-of-the-art device that is designed to move the camera: the Steadicam. A camera operator wears a vest made of cloth and aluminum, where a spring-loaded arm is attached to the vest at one end and a camera and sled are attached to the other end, allowing the camera to “float.” It takes years to master the Steadicam. All of these devices are costly, bulky and have a large footprint.
Most conventional dollies have four wheels with some kind of steering mechanism. In order to change direction, the user must steer the dolly much like a car. This type of steering introduces an arc as the dolly tracks over the ground, which does not allow for free, omni-directional movement. Conventional dollies also require a dolly grip just to operate the dolly itself. In order to make a tracking move with a conventional dolly, the camera operator sits on the dolly and communicates with the dolly grip where he wants the dolly to go. This communication goes on before, or sometimes during a shot. If adjustments are necessary during the shot, the camera operator may not always be able to relate this new information to the dolly grip in time to make those adjustments.
Currently, the most popular way to move a camera without a dolly is simply to put the camera on the operator's shoulder and walk. This method is know as “hand-held.” One draw back to the hand-held method is that it is difficult to shoot a low angle shot while walking or running. The lens height is the shoulder height of the camera operator. If he/she wants to move while shooting, he/she walks or runs. If the operator wants to shoot a low angle shot he/she sits down. If the operator wants to shoot a low angle tracking shot, the camera becomes too cumbersome. Crouching down with a 20 lb camera on your shoulder while walking or running can be quite difficult. The camera shakes far more than is desirable in a normal hand-held shot rendering it unusable.
Conventional dollies are not designed for hand-held shots. Their primary function is to mount a camera to the dolly using a fluid head or a geared head. This is why they are so large and heavy and require a dolly grip to operate. What is missing is a means of achieving a low angle hand-held shot without the expense of a Steadicam, or the use of a bulky dolly.